Wagon-body.



- PATBNTED MA 24, 1903.. .T. P. JOHNSON.

WAGON BODY.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 1, 1901.

,10 MODEL.

'fn/i anbor a/L P. Jb/znaon UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE:

JEREMIAH P. J OHNSONyOF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

WAGON-BODY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 723,391, dated March 24, 1903.

Application filed July 1, 1901.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, JEREMIAH P. J oHNsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing'at Detroit, in the county of Wayne and State of Michigan, haveinvented certain new and usef ul Improvementsin Wagon-Bodies, of which the following is a specification, reference be: ing had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to improvements in wagon-bodies, andhas for its primary object the provision of a body having reinforcing means for connecting and bracing the sides and ends thereof.

It is the objectof the invention to obtain a construction which will materially strengthen the structure without detracting from the appearance and which is inexpensive to manufacture and may be easily secured in position.

The invention consists in the construction as hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective View of a corner of a vehicle-body to which the brace is applied. Fig. 2 is a cross-section through said corner. Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view. Fig. 4' is a perspective view of the parts detached. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the blank from which the brace is formed; and Fig. 6 is a section on line w m, Fig. 1. I

The improvement comprises, essentially,an angle-bar having formed at one end thereof integral arms extending in aplane transverse to the longitudinal axis of said bar and at an angle to each other. This-brace is preferably formed of sheet metal, which is struck up from a Y-shaped blank, as shown in Fig. 5, and comprises a stem portion A and the oppositely-angling arms B and C. The opposite end of the stem Ais preferably slitted or cut away to form the bifurcation having the members a and b.

In forming up the blank the stem A is bent to form an angle cross-section, preferably slightly rounded at the corner, as indicated at c. The arms B and U are also bent into a transverse plane and are preferably formed into channeled bars grooved in their inner faces. They also have preferably formed therein one orwmore eyes d, which are pressed downward to form conical projections in the groove of the channel-bar. The finished brace is then formed with the shank A, having the rounded corner, the arms B and C, rounded Serial No. 66,690. (No model.)

on their upper faces and grooved on their lower face to fit overthe top edges of the body. The corner formed by the intersection of said arms and stem is'also rounded by the warping of the metal and forms continuous bracing-webs at each of the three angles. The brace thus formed may be applied to the body by securing the arms B and C at the top by nails or screws passing through the eyes (1, the sides of the channel serving to prevent danger of splitiug the wood. When thus secured, the furcations a and b at the lower end of the stem are bent over to cross each other, as shown in Fig. 3, and are then secured by nails or screws passing through eyes 6 at the ends of said furcations. The brace is thus securely fastened to the body without any direct attachment of the angle-bar stem. If desired, however, the latter maybe provided with perforations and additional nails or screws passed therethi'ough and driven into the body.

What I claim as my invention is In a wagon' body having side and end pieces, means for connecting and reinforcing the cor= ners of said body formed by the meeting of the side and end pieces, said means comprising sheet-metal braces bent to form a vertical member angular in cross-section adapted to fit the corners, inwardly-bent portions secured to the bottomof the body, and diverg' ing arms bent transversely from the upper end of the vertical member arranged to over= lie the top edges of the sides and ends of the body, the outer edges of said arms merging into the outer edges of the vertical member and the inner edges of said arms connecting with each other at a point adjacent to the juncture of the inner surfaces of the sides and ends of the body whereby a smooth unbroken reinforce extends around each corner, and part of the metal of each brace intermediate the upper end of the vertical member and the divergent arms thereof being Warped to permit the transverse bending of said arms and to brace the respective angles while presenting a continuous web at each of said angles.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JEREMIAH P. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

L. J. WHITTEMORE, M. B. ODOGHERTY. 

